This week, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down a ruling that shocked a lot of people.
The Court refused to hear the emergency appeal of a ruling to block South Carolina's bathroom ban legislation, known as the Student Physical Privacy Act.
Yes, it was a victory for liberals, but it was not quite the win that people are making it out to be, as we are seeing the situation blown way out of proportion in the m edia, much as we saw some stays that the Trump administration has won at the Court.
This legislation was introduced in the South Carolina state House on Jan. 9, 2024.
The bill would restrict the usage of bathrooms, locker rooms, and the like to the birth gender of all individuals, in essence making it a transgender bathroom ban.
District 15 Sen. Wes Climer stated, "There are a handful of radical activists across the state who believe that men should be able to go into girls locker rooms and girls bathrooms, and we are here to fight back against that.”
Chase Glenn, the executive director of Alliance For Full Acceptance (AFFA), countered, "This impacts a small segment of our population, and it's really a manufactured problem. It's not something that is bothering lots of people. It's not impacting lots of people. Now all of a sudden, you're creating a law and a rule that's going to separate them out. It's going to call attention to them." I would counter that by saying that if it makes one girl or boy uncomfortable, where are their rights?
Conservatives were hoping that the Supreme Court would step in and block the lower court ruling that had overridden the legislation.
The litigant in question had asked the Court to refuse the request for an emergency stay, stating that this was simply a question of one person using a restroom, thus South Carolina could enforce its rule everywhere else in the state.
Attorneys for the individual in question argued, “The appeals courts are in agreement that a ban like” South Carolina’s “classifies based on sex, and the government cannot show in this posture and on this record that this law will survive heightened scrutiny.”
They further pointed to Grimm v. Gloucester County School Board, a case in the 4th Circuit, which ruled that such a law was against federal law and violated the Constitution.
On Wednesday, the Court denied the emergency petition by the state, but the ruling was not based on the merits of the case itself, as was made very clear in the opinion.
The order stated, “Rather, it is based on the standards applicable for obtaining emergency relief from this Court.” The order noted that Justices Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas, and Neil Gorsuch were in dissent.
Alexandra Brodsky, litigation director for Public Justice’s Students’ Civil Rights Project, took a victory lap, stating, “Today’s decision from the Supreme Court reaffirms what we all know to be true: Contrary to South Carolina’s insistence, trans students are not emergencies.”
South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson lamented the decision but stated, “While we are disappointed in the Court’s decision today, we respect the process and will comply with the ruling.”
This fight is not over, not by a long shot. The only win that liberals got here was that the justices declined to accept the emergency petition. It’s a win for the left, but it could easily be reversed in the future as this case plays out in the courts.
